Mining, construction, and other large scale excavating operations require fleets of digging, loading, and hauling machines to remove and transport excavated material such as ore or overburden from an area of excavation to a predetermined destination. For such an operation to be profitable, the fleet of machines must be productively and efficiently operated. Many factors can influence productivity and efficiency at a worksite including, among other things, site conditions (i.e., rain, snow, ground moisture levels, material composition, visibility, terrain contour etc.), machine conditions (i.e., age, state of disrepair, malfunction, fuel grade in use, etc.), and operator conditions (i.e., experience, skill, dexterity, ability to multi-task, machine or worksite familiarity, etc.). Unfortunately, when operations at a worksite are unproductive or inefficient, it can be difficult to determine which of these factors is having the greatest influence and should be addressed.
One approach at diagnosing worksite problems is disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0267713 (the '713 publication) by Horkavi et al. published on Dec. 1, 2005. In the '713 publication, Horkavi et al. describes a data acquisition system for a machine that generates operator indexed information. The data acquisition system has a sensor disposed on the machine and configured to produce a signal indicative of an operating parameter of the machine. The data acquisition system also has an identification module disposed on the machine and configured to receive an input corresponding to a machine operator. The data acquisition system further has a controller disposed on the machine and in communication with the a sensor and the identification module. The controller is configured to record and link the signal and the input. The data acquisition system additional has a communication module disposed on the machine and in communication with the controller. The communication module is configured to transfer the recorded and linked signal and input from the controller to an off-board system. The off-board system then analyzes the recorded and linked signal and input to determine machine performance differences that can be directly attributed to particular operator control of the machine. This machine performance evaluation based on operator indexed information may allow for efficient deployment of personnel and equipment resources.
Although the method of the '713 publication may help in determining an affect of operator performance on a single machine's operation, it may lack applicability to a worksite at which multiple machines are operating. For example, if overall worksite productivity is low, the operator indexed information may do little to help distinguish if the low performance is due to a recent storm, poor machine health, or operator control.
The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.